Top Items:
Ben Smith / The Politico:
Stupak aims to sink ‘unacceptable’ abortion compromise — An aide to Rep. Bart Stupak (D. Mich.) coordinated opposition to the Senate health bill's abortion compromise this morning with the Republican Senate leadership according to a chain of frantic emails obtained this morning by POLITICO.
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Shailagh Murray / Washington Post:
Sen. Ben Nelson to announce support for health-care bill — Sen. Ben Nelson (Neb.), the final Democratic holdout on health care, was prepared to announce to his caucus Saturday morning that he would support the Senate reform bill, clearing the way for final passage by Christmas.
Discussion:
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Chris Frates / The Politico:
Ben Nelson's Medicaid deal — Sen. Mary Landrieu got the “Louisiana Purchase.” Sen. Ben Nelson got the federal government to pick up most his state's future Medicaid tab — forever. — As part of the deal to win Nelson's support, the federal government will pay for Nebraska's new Medicaid recipients.
Discussion:
The Hill, NO QUARTER, DISSENTING JUSTICE, Betsy's Page, NewsBusters.org and The Other McCain
Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
National Organization for Women opposes Senate health bill — A leading women's group called on senators on Saturday to defeat its healthcare reform bill. — The leader of the National Organization for Women (NOW) excoriated the language in the health bill curtailing federal support …
Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
Senate healthcare bill steepens payroll tax for high-earners in 2013 — The Senate's final healthcare bill steepens the payroll tax rates high-income Americans will face. — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) released a manager's amendment to the healthcare bill finalizing …
New York Times:
Democrats Clinch a Deal on Health Bill — WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats said on Saturday that they had clinched an agreement on a far-reaching overhaul of the nation's health care system, and that they were on track to approve the legislation by Christmas over fierce Republican opposition.
Igor / Wonk Room:
Nelson's Nebraska To Receive Extra Medicaid Funds Under Senate Bill — This morning's managers amendment to the merged Senate health bill goes a long way towards satisfying the demands of Democratic hold-out and all-important 60th vote Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE).
Ezra Klein:
The Congressional Budget Office scores the amended Senate bill — Another day, another Congressional Budget Office report (pdf) saying that health-care reform will cover more than 30 million people while substantially cutting the federal deficit. — There are a couple of changes worth noting here.
Discussion:
TalkLeft
Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
CBO: Senate health bill costs $871 billion — The Senate's healthcare bill would cost $871 billion and cover 31 million more people, according to the Congressional Budget Office's analysis of the bill. — The CBO said that the final legislation, unveiled Saturday by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid …
John McCormack / Weekly Standard:
Nelson Agrees to Abortion Funding in at Least 13 States? — Harry Reid has released the manager's amendment that Ben Nelson has reportedly agreed to vote for, meaning that the Senate bill has 60 votes. The abortion language includes the phony segregation of funding language that was rejected in the House.
Wall Street Journal:
Democrats Secure 60 Votes on Health Bill — WASHINGTON — Senate Democratic leaders achieved a breakthrough Saturday in the drive for health overhaul legislation, securing the 60 votes needed to ensure passage after a late-night deal on abortion coverage locked in the support of Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson.
Ed Morrissey / Hot Air:Breaking: Nelson will vote for cloture
Discussion:
Scared Monkeys, GayPatriot, Support Your Local Gunfighter, Wonk Room and Jules Crittenden
Jeffrey Young / The Hill:CBO: Health bill spends $871B, reduces deficit by $132B
Discussion:
The Political Carnival
Kevin Bogardus / The Hill: Coburn: Nelson agreement with leaders ‘threw unborn babies under the bus’
Joe Conason / Salon:
“It's unfair” — Howard Dean on why he doesn't support the Senate bill, which he calls “hocus pocus” reform — Howard Dean proved long ago that he marches to the beat of his own conscience. Neither personal attacks nor appeals to party — nor mockery voiced by Washington's media establishment …
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars
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SusanG / Daily Kos:
A defensive Obama demands up or down vote for health care — In a strikingly multi-purpose, multi-messaging weekly address, President Barack Obama this morning tackled— you guessed it — health care, in a discussion that ranged over old history and current events, sounding one part defensive to two parts exhortatory.
Discussion:
Congress Matters
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Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
A Good Bill — I don't want to endlessly rehash the intramural argument about whether this bill is worth passing or not, since at the end of the day I'm looking forward to working with all the netroots activists of the world on more and better legislation in the future.
Discussion:
Paul Krugman
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Douglas Elmendorf / Director's Blog:
Manager's Amendment to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act — CBO and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) have released an analysis of the budgetary effects of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), Senate Amendment 2786 in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 3590 …
William Kristol / Weekly Standard:
A Pyrrhic Victory? — Special editorial, December 19, 2009. — When a fellow conservative tried to cheer me up this morning by assuring me that the Senate Democrats' victory on health care was going to be a Pyrrhic one, I realized I didn't remember much about Pyrrhus. — I went of course to Wikipedia.
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The Corner on National …
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